Beep, Beep, Beep! With your face, whiter than your doctors ghost white uniform and more scared than a five-year old screaming “Mommy, Mommy there is a monster under the bed” at 4 'o clock in the morning; your laying in a hospital bed. According to the Red Cross, every two seconds someone in America needs blood. These two seconds are yours but the Red Cross is one donor short. This is the time when a volunteer could make a difference. Every American should donate blood to the American Red Cross because they can continue Dr. Charles Drews tradition and become one of the five million people who are positively impacted because they will find their power to make a difference.

To begin, you must understand what Dr. Charles Drews did so you can a part of continuing his tradition. Dr. Charles was more than just a typical doctor who gives little children pepto bismol for their upset stomachs. What he actually did was made history in 1940 by founding the first American Red Cross Blood Drive. He started this organization because he had a special desire to help others lives. What he did was exactly that because according to Bonnie McEleveen, the Red Cross' blood is distributed to 38,000 lives every day. With that in mind, having so many patients requires blood to distribute to those recipients. Firstly, the donors are the people who play the largest role in keeping Dr. Charles tradition going. That is because there is 1,266 donors needed every day. It is not just the recipients and donors that make all this possible. It is the volunteers who help organize blood drives by giving their time and leadership skills to also help make a difference. Now, these are the people who take part in saving 4.5 million Americans every year. Without all these people, America would be nowhere but, with them we will be more than somewhere. We will be somewhere making a difference.

Five million, five million is the amount of people who are being positively impacted every year, just because of this organization. There are three specific groups of people who in my opinion, are extremely impacted. These people are the blood patients, the volunteers, and our own lives.

To start off, the blood patients are impacted because within the time I am giving this oratory, 150 people will need blood and those people will have the blood they need but only because of the donors. Next, the volunteers will be impacted possibly even more than the recipients. The United Health Group stated that 84% of volunteers were physically healthier. Just imagine every American volunteering and what will that make us? Healthier, the fattest country has the power to be healthier. Lastly, our own lives are impacted because first off, all it takes is one severe car accident and according to the Red Cross, we would need approximately 100 pints of blood. Maybe, you might of even already
needed blood sometime in your life and if were not for the willing donors, you might not be here right now. That is why the generosity of people in 2012 will last not for just months but years after years to come. That is why the little things make all the difference.

No, you cannot fly and you are not Superman. Superheros have the power to fly and we have the power to make a difference. Firstly, the only reason I say this organization needs donors and volunteers is because according to the Red Cross, there is no substitute for human blood. That is why I say the people who do not donate need to step up and take responsibility. Secondly, according to Bonnie McEleveen the number one reason that Americans do not donate blood is “never thought about it”. What I say to that is to start thinking because what if it was your loved one who is at the last second of life? Because if you were like me, not knowing if your mother was going to live because she did not have enough blood and it was too late for a donor to step in. Just think about it, your mother receiving 21 pints of blood and you still not knowing if that is enough. For, if it was not for the gracious donors, I would not have my mother or the opportunity right now to tell you why you should give to the Red Cross Blood organization. In my opinion, it should not take a terrorist attack when there is not enough blood or the last seconds of a loved one to feel the need to be a donor. You should give because your heart is telling you to and when you do, you will find your power to make a difference.

Now that I am done telling you all I have to tell you, my wish is for you to take action. Because, what if it was you laying on the hospital bed and the Red Cross was one donor short. That is why I told you that you can continue Dr. Charles tradition and you can be one of the five million people positively impacted because I am promising you that you will find your power to make a difference. Remember, what if that person without enough blood was you, and that was your last chance at life, ever again.